Missed Opportunities
by Emily728
Summary: What might have happened after the season 2 finale? What if Kate had told Lanie about what she was going to confess to Castle? Might things have been different?
1. Kate's confession

Disclaimer: Of course, I do not own Castle or any of its characters.

Summary: What might have happened after the season 2 finale? What if Kate had told Lanie about what she was going to confess to Castle? Might things have been different?

Author's Note: Every time I watch that finale, I am never satisfied with the ending. It always makes my blood boil with anger. This is how I would have wanted it to have gone.

Watching Castle walk down the hall with his arm around Gina, Kate was overwhelmed with a sense of dread. She had gotten her hopes up so high that she was going to be the one going to the Hamptons with him, that the thought that she would have to spend this summer alone, wondering what he was doing, devastated her. The possibility that he might never come back…well, that just shattered her completely. She had to know. She had to make sure that she would get to see him again, even if it wasn't soon.

"See you in the fall?" She asked insecurely.

Castle turned around, but didn't stop walking; completely oblivious to what Kate was feeling. "See you in the fall."

Kate watched as the man she was about to pronounce her love to walked away with another woman, no doubt about to start a relationship with her again. Tears stung her eyes as she yearned to be the one he had his arm around; the one that he was about to spend his summer with; the one he would touch, hold, and love. She couldn't help but think that she might have just lost her chance to ever see that happen. Blinking rapidly to try to fight away the tears, she turned to see the absolutely pitiful faces of her team members staring back at her. The telltale signs of what really just happened, she knew, were written all over her face. She didn't want them to see her like this.

She opened the door to the break room where they were all gathered. "He said he would be back in the fall. Nothing to worry about." She said, feigning nonchalance.

They all gave her curt nods with solemn faces, silently understanding that she didn't want to talk about it. Esposito turned back to the table, grabbed a beer, and handed Ryan one as well. They sat back down in their chairs and detached themselves in a casual conversation, Esposito trying very hard not to be the brother bear he was and wrap Kate up in a hug.

Montgomery still stood in the doorway with Lanie and Kate until Lanie conspicuously gave him a stare that clearly meant, 'get the heck out of here'. Montgomery, oblivious to it for a few seconds, finally caught on after a moment of awkward silence and said, "Oh, um…it's late. I should uh…get going," and excused himself from the room, Lanie's eyes following him as he left.

When Montgomery was out of view, Lanie gently grabbed Kate's arm and led her out into the hallway, out of earshot to Esposito and Ryan. "Are you ok?"

Kate chose to imitate innocence saying, "Yea. Why wouldn't I be?" She crossed her arms in a defense position, looking at Lanie.

Lanie, in turn, gave her a 'you have got to be kidding me' look and narrowed her eyes at her.

Slowly, Kate's façade started to resolve and it took everything she had not to break down right there into Lanie's arms. "No…no, Lanie. I'm not ok."

Lanie gave a somber, touching nod and guided her to a bench in the middle of the hallway. Lanie looked around to make sure there was no one around before they both sat down, facing each other. Lanie took Kate's hand asking, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Kate shook her head in disbelief, trying to decide the answer to her question. She knew she wanted and needed to talk to someone about this, if only just to get her thoughts and feelings out in the open so they weren't locked inside her head any longer. She knew she could confide in Lanie and that she would understand. She just wasn't sure about admitting to someone other than herself how she feels about Castle.

His name echoed in her head and almost sent her over the edge once more in grief. Deciding that to ignore her pride for a moment, she decided she should tell Lanie.

"He invited me to spend the weekend with him in the Hamptons," She stated, not exactly sure where to start. Lanie nodded for her to continue. "At first, I thought he was joking, so I played along. But then, he told me he was serious." She looked down, shaking her head. "I almost agreed before I realized I had already made plans with Tom." She looked up with a somber smile on her face. "It's funny. You know, every time I Tom is around, or I even mention his name, Castle gets this…I don't know, dejected look on his face, like he's uncomfortable. I didn't know what to make of that. I mean, I never thought all of the flirting and teasing we do was actually going somewhere. I figured…that was just Castle's personality. I bet he did that with all of the girls…and then…" She paused for a second, getting her bearings.

"Then, I started to have…these feelings when I was around him and we would flirt. The occasional flutter in my stomach, the gooseflesh that would follow any time he touched me, the increasing heart rate when he got just a tad bit closer to me than I expected him to."

"Sounds like you were falling in love." Lanie said for the first time since Kate started.

"Yea, but I didn't want to admit it. So, I buried those emotions any time they would come up. I buried myself in work…in Demming. I thought that maybe if I poured all of those feelings into my relationship with him, that maybe I wouldn't feel them around Castle anymore, but around Demming." She looked down again, picking at her nails. "The thing is…I never felt that way around Tom. I even went as far as trying to force myself to have those feelings around him. But it never worked. I was frustrated with myself for feeling that way. I felt like a terrible person. I was leading Tom on, but I didn't want to break up with him because that gave me an excuse not to follow my feelings for Castle."

"And why would that be a bad thing?" Lanie asked gently, squeezing Kate's hand. "You may not see the way Castle looks at you, but I do. Kate, before he came along, I don't think I ever saw you smile while on the job. He makes you laugh and have fun. So, why are you so afraid to be with him?

Kate stood up. "Lanie, I don't know." She sighed, exasperated, and started to pace with one hand on her head and the other on her hip. "Because he is a player, a womanizer. He's a celebrity for God's sake! He has a new girl in his bed every week! How the hell am I supposed to compete with that? I mean, he's dated supermodels, actresses, and singers! Why the hell would he want to date a hardcore, heartless detective?" She sighed again, calming down. "He isn't stable or reliable. For all I know, he could get bored the second week after we start dating and move on."

"Sounds like you're just afraid to take a risk, Kate." Lanie cocked an eyebrow at her.

"Well, yea! Of course I am. I don't want to set myself up for heartbreak." She exhaled and sat down, putting her head in her hands.

Lanie put her hand on her shoulder. "That still doesn't explain the crestfallen look on your face when he left."

With her head still in her hands and eyes closed, she mumbled, "I was going to tell him."

"You were going to do what now?" Lanie asked, leaning closer.

Kate opened her eyes and looked at Lanie out of the corner of her eye. Putting her hands down and leaning back against the wall, she looked straight ahead and said, "I was going to tell him," not wanting to see Lanie's reaction.

Lanie paused for a minute and leaned back as well. "Oh. I see." She peered over to see Kate's eyes still trained on that spot on the wall. "What changed your mind?"

"Well," Kate looked down again. "Castle told me that…that he was going to leave for the summer, you know. And Esposito brought up the fact that it might not be just for the summer. He said that maybe he wasn't following me around just for research anymore. That it might be something else, and that the reason probably didn't include watching me be with another guy."

Lanie nodded and looked down as Kate paused. "Well, he might be right."

Kate nodded. "Yea, that's what I thought. I mean, suddenly, all of my fears that I didn't want to face became real. Castle might leave and I would never see him again. I couldn't bear that thought. And then Montgomery said something to me that really opened my eyes. It involved the case we just cracked. He said, 'Its sad that a man had to die because all of the people involved were too scared to say what they really felt.' Now, I know that the likelihood that Castle would die because I wouldn't tell him how I felt was slim to none. But I thought, why should I have to be in a loveless relationship when there is a possibility that I could be happy? I decided that…" She looked at Lanie for the first time and smiled. "Castle was worth the risk."

Lanie gave her a proud smile but then realized, "Then what went wrong?"

"Well, I was going to tell him right then and there, but he was in a hurry to go see Alexis before she left for her summer program at Princeton. He said he would be back later for the party, so I figured I would tell him then. That's what I wanted to talk to him about when we stepped out."

"Ok. So, then how did he take it?"

Kate sighed and closed her eyes for a few seconds. "I never got to tell him."

"What do you mean?" Lanie asked, confusion etched on her face.

"Just as I was about to spit it out, Gina showed up. Castle said that they were going to the Hamptons together and that they had reconnected. They both had that look on their faces like they were on their honeymoon or something-"

"Wait. Hold on a second." Lanie interrupted. "So, he invited you to go with him right? And then he turns around and asks another woman?" Lanie asked incredulously.

"Well, to be fair. I did tell him I had other plans."

"Well sure, but he still shouldn't have asked someone else after he already asked you. That's like asking someone to the prom because your first choice turned you down."

"Well, at least I was his first choice." Kate smiled.

Lanie smiled back and grabbed her hand. "I'm sorry things didn't work out sweetie. I don't think you should give up, though"

Kate fought back tears. "He's with Gina now. I don't want to be the home wrecker who broke them up. What if he's still in love with her? I don't want to have that target on my back. I don't want to look like the bad guy." Kate let a few tears spill out onto her cheeks.

Lanie wrapped an arm around Kate and let her rest her head on her shoulder. She could tell Kate was annoyed with herself for being so vulnerable and was trying to fight back tears. "Kate. It's ok to cry. You don't have to be strong all the time. Besides, I promise your secret's safe with me."

With that, Kate let the tears flow out of her broken heart. She cried over the possible loss of a colleague, a friend…and a lover. She cried because she might never get to tell him how she felt. She cried because he might be in love with someone else. She cried for her sense of normality, that it might all be shattered now.

Lanie was lost in thought as she soothingly rubbed circles on her friend's back while she cried. Kate hadn't opened up to her this much before. Sure, they were friends; probably the best friends either of them had. But they weren't the kind of friends who got all mushy with each other and talked about their feelings. They were the kind of friends that teased each other and got drinks on occasion. She knew, though, that this was a much-needed talk, not just for Kate. Lanie wanted to help her friend, and just because they didn't talk about their feelings much, didn't mean that Lanie wasn't protective of the only friend she had.

She could feel anger and bitterness rising up inside of her. Richard Castle had no idea what he had just done to the broken woman in her arms. She wanted to make him realize just how much he hurt her. She wanted him to feel the guilt and sorrow that he deserved. She also, though, wanted to smack some sense into him. She wanted to mend this…thing that was going between him and Kate. Most of all, she wanted them to just be together. Everyone knows they are perfect for each other. Maybe giving Castle the smack down he needed would give her the satisfaction of hurting him and give him the realization that he wants to be with Kate as well.

And she knew just how to do that. Smiling, she pondered over her plan in her head. She knew it would work. It had to.

Author's Note: I'm working on the next chapter, so if you like it and want to see what her plan is, please review!


	2. Part One

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own Castle.

Author's Note: Alright, I am very sorry that it took me so long to write this next chapter. I had a hard time figuring out where exactly I wanted to take this story. I think I have figured it out and I hope you guys like it.

Richard Castle sat on his couch in the living room of his Hamptons beach house with his computer in his lap. He had been trying to finish this paragraph for hours. He just could not find the inspiration to write, not even with the gorgeous sandy beach view to his right. The double glass doors let in the soft rays of sunlight as it made its descent into the night, flickering off the ocean. Outside, he could see a beach volleyball game going on while others sat and enjoyed the last radiance of the sun. He wished he was anywhere but stuck inside of his house with no idea how to finish this book.

Well, maybe not just anywhere. His thoughts drifted to Kate. He knew she had begun to say something. Something important. He wished he knew what it was. Maybe he should have stayed and pressed her on it. Maybe he should have stepped away from Gina and allow some room to talk for a minute. He might never know now.

He wished she was here right now, that she would have agreed to come with him. Instead, he is stuck here knowing that she is somewhere with Demming right now and left to wonder what exactly they were doing. Maybe they were cuddled up on his couch watching a movie and drinking coffee. He wondered if Demming knew her exact coffee order like he did. He wondered if she let him play with her hair or nuzzle her ear; if she allowed him to pull her into his lap and wrap his arms around her just to simply be there with each other, no intention of anything else.

He was torturing himself. He wished the answer to all of his questions was no, of course not. He knew otherwise, however. He was her boyfriend. Of course she let him cuddle with her and twirl his fingers in her hair. He started to imagine himself doing those exact things with her. He imagined it was she in his lap instead of his computer. He imagined caressing her hair and bringing it up to his nose to breath in the aroma that was Kate. He imagined gathering it up and pulling it to one side so he could lay gentle kisses on her neck and ear. He imagined her giggling as he did so. Then, she would reach out and stroke his cheek and he would lean in ever so closer until the distance between them was almost breached.

"Rick!" He was stunned out of his musings and looked up to see Gina standing in front of him, hands on her hips and eyes that bore daggers into him. "What the hell are you doing?"

Rick looked down at the computer. "Um, Writing?"

"Oh is that right? You haven't written a single word since I left you here two hours ago." She crossed her arms and waited for his excuse.

"Right. Look I'm sorry. I just have a little case of writer's block. I'll work it out. Don't worry." He set the computer on the coffee table in front of him and stood up. "I'm going to make myself a little snack. Would you like something?" He started to walk towards the kitchen.

"Oh don't say sorry to me. You're the one that's going to be sorry when the company decides not to publish your book because you're taking too long to write it." Gina followed him into the kitchen. Castle rolled his eyes thinking, would that be such bad thing? He turned to her and but the apple he had just grabbed.

"And you don't work through writer's block by eating. You work through it by writing." She grabbed his shoulders and steered him back into the living room.

Castle slumped his shoulders and stomped back to the couch like a twelve year old that was told to do his homework before he played outside with his friends.

"Fine. But I'm telling you, nothing is going to come out. The words aren't just going to suddenly appear in my head just because you told them to."

Gina narrowed her eyes at him and was beginning to retort when there was a knock at the door. Castle, knowing he was off the hook said, "You'd better get that so I can finish writing," with one of his signature grins.

Begrudgingly, Gina gave him a death stare, but proceeded to walk over to the door. Castle tried to peek around the corner to see whom it was, but Gina obstructed his view. Deciding that it probably wasn't important, he went back to staring at his computer.

Gina opened the door to an average height, black woman with curly hair landing just below the shoulders. Her eyes were hard and stood on the doorstep like she owned the place. Gina leaned against the doorframe and before she could ask who this woman was, she said, "Gina Griffin?"

Gina straightened up. "Yes," she said creasing her eyebrows.

"I believe that is your car over there." She pointed to the street a few yards behind the house.

Castle faintly recognized the woman's voice, but…no. He had to have been imagining it.

Gina looked to where the woman was pointing and saw that a greasy looking man in overalls was towing her brand new Cherry Red BMW. Mortified, she raced over to him, screaming, "What the hell are you doing! That's my car! Get your slimy hands off of it! I swear I paid those parking tickets!" In her haste she left the door wide open.

The woman sauntered in, slamming the door effectively grabbing Castle's attention.

Castle stood up, "Lanie?"

"Sit down!" Castle fell back into his seat with a dropped jaw.

"What are you-"

"Zip it!" She came and towered above him. He snapped his mouth closed and waited for her to finish. "You are some kinda fool, Castle."

Castle crinkled his eyebrows; "What-" He saw the look Lanie was giving him and immediately shut up.

"What the hell do you think you're doing? Do you know what kind of state you left Kate in? How could you come here with that woman, Castle, after what Kate did for you?"

Castle decided to brave the death stare and stood up. "What I did to her? She lied to me about why she couldn't come here with me. I invited her before I even spoke with Gina. She told me that she was working. And she wasn't. She was going away with Demming." He spat his name like it was a disease. His nostrils flared as he and Lanie had a stare down. "You don't think that I would rather be here with her?" Castle continued. "You don't think that I have been sitting here agonizing over what she and Demming are doing right now? It's been torturing me! I haven't been able to write a damn word since I got here!"

Lanie took a step closer to him. "Well then you will be surprised and pleased to know that she broke up with Demming."

Castle's stance faltered a bit, letting Lanie take the lead. "What? Wait…What?"

"That's right, Castle. She was going to tell you that she-" She stopped short, thinking that should be saved for Castle to hear from Kate. Lanie turned around and closed her eyes, trying to mask her mistake.

"That she what?" Castle said, disbelievingly. "That she would rather be with me? That she broke up with him for me? …That she loved me? Please! You know that's only in my dreams!"

"Is that so?" Castle spun around to see Gina standing at the door, a hurt expression on her face.

"Gina. I didn't…" She walked towards him slowly.

"If that's how you feel, then why string me along? You think I'm little puppy that will come running to comfort you whenever you call my name?"

"Gina, that's not-"

"Rick. For Gods' sake just be honest with me!" Her eyes bore into his, pleading.

"Gina…I…."

"Do you love her, Richard?" Gina crossed her arms and dared him to lie to her.

Castle stood there with remorseful eyes, not knowing what to say.

Gina scoffed. "Goodbye Rick." She proceeded to walk back to the front door.

Castle grabbed her arm. "Gina, wait. Please."

"I just hope you actually have the guts to tell her, unlike me." And then she was out of his grasp and out the door.

Castle stared after her, unwavering in his stance.

"Well?" Lanie gently asked.

Castle turned to her, a defeated look on his face. He shrugged sluggishly. "What?"

"Do you?"

Castle's eyes changed into an incredulous look. "Didn't you see what just happened?" He pointed to the closed door. "Gina just left me! Because you decided to show up here and put ideas into my head!"

"Oh no. You do not get to blame this on me. You were the one who said that you would rather be here with Kate. You're the one who couldn't answer her when she asked if you loved her. This one is on you."

Castle turned away.

"And anyway, what does it matter? You don't love Gina. You just wanted to get your mind off of Kate."

Castle turned. "That's not what this-"

"Tell me I'm wrong," she challenged. After a few seconds of silence, she continued. "You were right."

Castle looked at her, confused. He crossed his arms and walked a little closer to her. "What are you talking about?"

"About what you thought I was going to say earlier."

Castle thought for a moment. "That can't be true."

"Castle I assure you, it is."

"You mean to tell me that Kate left Demming so she could come here with me?"

Lanie just looked him in the eyes, willing him to see the truth in them. Castle's face deteriorated with recognition. He uncrossed his arms and said gently, "That's what she was going to tell me in the precinct?"

Lanie just nodded. Castle turned away and was still for a moment. He suddenly slammed his fist into a nearby wall. "I'm so stupid!"

Lanie just shrugged, thinking; well now he realizes it. "God, now she probably hates me! Why? Why couldn't I have realized this before?"

"Yea that's what I said." Lanie scoffed. She turned to see Castle eyeballing her. "Sorry."

"Lanie, I have to fix this." He sobered and walked towards her again.

She waved him off. "Relax. I already got it covered." At Castle's disconcerted look, she added, "What? You didn't think this was my only plan did you? Please. This was just part one." She smiled deviously.

Author's Note: Ok, so I already have the next chapter written and ready to put up. So maybe, if I get enough reviews, I'll put it up later tonight...If not...well then maybe I'll make you guys wait a whole other week. It's up to you. ;)


	3. Part Two

Disclaimer: As fore mentioned, I do not own Castle.

Author's Note: So, even though I only got a whopping FIVE reviews, I decided that it would be cruel to withhold it from those FIVE people who actually took time to review. I thank you all greatly. However, I have not even started writing the next chapter or picked an idea for it, yet. So, the more reviews I get, the more motivation for me to write. =) Just saying. Anyways, enjoy this chapter.

"Esposito, I already saw the body." Kate Beckett said as she was led down to the morgue for the second time.

"Lanie said she found something new."

"Then why didn't she just tell me that?"

Esposito smiled and opened the doors at the end of the hall. Kate walked through and saw Lanie standing in front of an empty table.

"Where's the body?" It was then that she saw Castle standing in the corner, hidden by the shadows. She flared. "Lanie, what the hell is this?"

"Kate, just hear him out."

Kate scoffed and turned to walk out the door only to find Esposito blocking it. "Espo, you'd better move if you know what's good for you."

"Sorry, Chica. Can't do that."

Kate narrowed her eyes at him and spun back around to Lanie. "Lanie, you better have a damn good reason for doing this."

Lanie smiled. "Trust me. Just keep an open mind." Lanie slowly started to walk towards the door, Kate eyeballing her the whole time. When she reached Esposito, she whispered, "I think she's about to snap. We should probably…"

Kate narrowed her eyes even further. "Go, go, go." Lanie ushered Esposito out the doors and quickly held them shut. Esposito barricaded it with the table in the hall and gave a short, smug smile to Kate through the window before rushing after Lanie.

Kate turned to Castle. "Alright. What do you want?"

"Kate, I owe you an apology."

"Pssh. Yea right. Did Lanie tell you to do this?"

Castle walked towards her. His eyes glued to hers, silently telling her his answer.

"Castle. There is nothing to apologize for all right? You're off the hook." Kate turned towards the door. Castle grabbed her arm.

"Kate. Please, just hear me out." Castle pleaded with her.

Kate looked into his eyes and subtly nodded.

With newfound confidence, Castle continued. "I knew it was wrong of me to invite Gina to the Hamptons with me when I already invited you. I was a jerk, and I am very sorry."

Kate waited for him to say more, but when he didn't, she simply said, "Alright."

"Alright?"

"Apology accepted." She spun towards the door once more.

"Kate." Castle begged.

She stopped, but didn't turn back around.

"Kate, what were you going to tell me yesterday?"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Castle spun her around.

"The hell you don't."

"Castle. I told you. I just wanted to say have a great summer." She practically spat it at him. Castle stared into her bitter eyes, searching frantically for what to say next.

"Gina and I broke up."

"You what? You both seemed so happy yesterday," she said sarcastically.

"And I know you broke up with Demming," Castle continued.

Kate stopped and searched his eyes. How had he known that? There is no way. It just happened yesterday…Lanie. She was going to kill her.

"Why did you break up with him, Kate?" Castle knew it was cruel to ask her questions that he already knew the answers to just to test her, but he didn't want to show her all of his cards just yet.

"That is none of your business." Kate's face went stone cold.

"Fine. But I will tell you why Gina broke up with me." Castle took Kate's hand. She tried to pull away but he held his grasp. "She found out that I have feelings for someone else. That whole day, I did not write a single word even with her breathing down my neck. You know what I did, Kate?" He forced her to look at him. "I tormented myself thinking about what you were doing with Demming. I fantasized that you were there with me. I desperately wished that you were there instead of Gina."

"Are you trying to guilt-trip me, Castle? What was I supposed to do? Just drop all of my plans because you invited me to your house?"

"Kate, I am not guilt tripping you. I just want you to know how I feel about you."

"Yea, well. It's a little too late for that."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means, that I sat around and watched you go out with girl after superficial girl, Castle. It means that I watched you laugh and gloat about it to the boys. And then you had the nerve to flirt with me and not expect me to fall for you. I didn't want to, you know. I knew you were dangerous. I knew you would hurt me. So I tried to mask it, and the one time I was attracted to a man other than you, you ruined it. I watched you date countless women and then you have the nerve to ruin my one perfectly healthy relationship!" She moved until her face was inches from his. "All because you wanted to have your cake and eat it, too."

Castle watched the unshed tears glisten in her eyes. He wanted to caress her cheek, to hold her and tell her that he wasn't going to leave her. Instead, he stood there, motionless, watching as her eyes bore into his soul.

"Kate. I had no idea." He spoke gently.

"I won't be hurt again, Castle."

"Kate. I won't-"

"Don't make promises you can't keep."

"Kate. I know it's cliché, but that isn't me anymore."

Kate scoffed and turned away.

"Kate, I promise I will do whatever it takes to show you how much you mean to me…I love yo-"

"Oh no you don't. You don't get to play the love card. Not like this. You think you can say those three little words and I will come running back to you?" She turned back around and gave him her death stare.

"Kate, that's not-"

"Castle. I don't want to hear it." She put her hand up to him, signaling him to go no further.

"Kate. Tell me what I can do."

Kate stared deep into his eyes.

"I'm sorry…Kate I am so sorry that I never saw how you felt before. I was insensitive. I was oblivious and ignorant." He grabbed her hand once more. "Kate, I never realized that I was hurting you. I was just so jealous of you and Demming. I wanted you to only have eyes for me. And it was stupid of me to think that you were always just going to be waiting there for me."

"Yea it was."

"I was just scared. Kate, the way I feel about you…it's intense and real. All of my other relationships have just been about lust. With you, I mean yea it was lust at first, but then you turned me down and it intrigued me. As I got to know you, I realized how different you were from any other girl I have ever met. I started falling for you. Hard. I didn't know what to make of it, so I hid from it. Although, I found myself having to work harder just to feel an attraction for another woman. You were-are- all I think about. I don't want to lose you, Kate. Please, just give me another chance."

Kate had been focused on his eyes and his body language, looking for any sign that he was lying or just spinning crap for her benefit. What she saw, though, frightened her. Sincerity. In every word. She didn't know what to make of it. She was used to their seemingly meaningless flirting and teasing, but this…this was pure, raw emotion and passion. She didn't know if she could let him back in. After all, what if he changed his mind? What if tomorrow he met a new gorgeous model or something and completely forgot about her? She didn't know if he was worth the risk.

But, then again. She knew exactly what he was saying, because she felt it, too. He was different, and that scared her as well. His name constantly popping up in her head; it annoyed her. Her heart fluttering every time she saw him; her stomach doing flip flops whenever he complimented her; her head spinning whenever he stunned her with one of his charming, flirtatious comments, even if he was just joking around.

She didn't know what to do. Was he worth getting hurt again?

She was about to answer when they heard the table being moved outside. Suddenly the doors burst open and Sidney Perlmutter, the other M.E., stood in the doorway. "What the hell is going on, here?"

"Sorry, Perlmutter. We were just leaving." Kate glanced at Castle before turning to walk out.

Castle reached out and grabbed her hand. She didn't turn around, but stopped. "Please. Just think about it, Kate."

Kate turned to look at him. She saw the desire in his eyes. She saw the hurt, regretful gleam in them. He was truly remorseful. She decided that if he wanted her back, he was going to have to win her back. She gave him a small smile, showing hope of a future. "See you tomorrow, Castle." And then she left, leaving him to wonder if she was really going to give him a shot. With his signature smirk, he followed after her.

"Twenty bucks says she totally chewed him out. I bet he will come out of there looking like a lost puppy." Esposito said to Lanie as they stood down the hall from the morgue.

"You're on. I know my girl. She does have somewhat of a heart." Lanie smirked back at him.

"I don't know. This seemed pretty serious. You really think she'll take him back." Esposito questioned.

Lanie shrugged.

At that moment, Kate came waltzing down the hallway like she owned the place, as usual, confidence written all over her face. Following closely behind was Castle with a tiny smirk on his face. Kate turned and winked at Lanie. "You coming Espo?" She asked as she and Castle walked towards the elevator.

"Oh he looks like a puppy alright, but he ain't lost. More like found." Lanie whispered to Esposito as he slipped her a twenty with a sideways scowl. He quickly followed them to the elevator.

Back in the precinct, Castle snuck up next to Kate, who was standing in front of the murder board, and handed her a coffee saying, "So, what do we got?"

Kate could only smirk at his not-so subtle launch into their normal routine.

Author's Note: So, I sincerely hope I get more reviews this time. And since I don't have a set in stone idea for the next chapter, review with some wants/desires/opinions for where you would like this story to go and they just might get put into the story. So please, please, please review!


	4. Kate Off Guard

Author's Note: Ok, so I have decided to go in a bit different direction with this. I originally started writing little tidbits of a case just to keep the normality going, but I got really into the mystery. So, this will now be a case fic, as well as, of course, the romance. Its going to progress slowly, though, as I feel it will seem more realistic that way. I hope I can keep you guys interested in it for that long. Anyways, I hope you enjoy what I have decided to do. Enjoy =)

"So, yesterday at approximately 10:51 a.m. Lauren Tovar was found in her apartment by her roommate with her throat slit." Kate Beckett started to fill Castle in on their current case. "She and her roommate, Emma, had lunch plans and Emma had come to pick her up only to find her laying on the floor behind the couch with a pool of blood around her. Lauren was currently working for the New York Times as a journalist." Kate leaned against her desk, staring at the murder board with Castle next to her. A little too close, if she was being honest.

"Ok. So, maybe she was writing an article about a touchy subject and someone didn't want it hitting the public. What sort of pieces did she write?" Castle asked.

Kate checked her notes. "We spoke with her editor and she told us that Lauren wrote mostly just articles featuring local restaurants that were fairly new or just opening. She would write a review and then give a background on each restaurant, a little about their heritage, their story, and why they wanted to open a restaurant."

Castle nodded. "So, the chef of a brand new Italian Restaurant notices that Lauren didn't exactly have a pleased expression as she sampled his food. Maybe she made a comment about it to a waiter or another patron and it got back to him. Either way, her article could completely destroy his business. So, he follows her back to her apartment one night and slits her throat, making sure she is never able to talk again." Castle had a far-out look in his eyes.

Kate brought him back down by saying, "Come on, Castle. Killing someone over a bad review?" She rolled her eyes.

"Yea, you're probably right," he said dejectedly, " I still think you should see what her latest article was going to be about, though."

"Already ahead of you, bro." Esposito walked in with Ryan holding a stack of papers. Ryan, who was completely oblivious to the fact that the pair had sort of reconciled, noticed Castle and gave a confused expression to Kate, who simply shrugged it of. "We got this off of Lauren's desk. Most of it is a bunch of jumbled words and scribbles. But, it says something about the Golden Dragon. It's a Chinese restaurant over on 57th and Lex."

Ryan interjected, "Yea, and from the looks of it, she wasn't so much bashing the food as she was the owner. Says something about him being an arrogant tyrant who didn't know how to treat his customers."

"Alright, Castle and I will go check it out and see what information we can get from the owner. Meanwhile, I want you guys to check into Lauren's hobbies. Was she in any clubs? Did she regularly work out at a gym? That sort of thing. And check her financials. See if there was anything unusual she was spending her money on." Kate said as she grabbed her coat.

The boys nodded and headed to their respective desks.

Castle followed Kate into the elevator. "So, you thinking maybe I was right?"

"No." Kate said without any hesitation.

As Kate drove her Crown Vic to the location, she could feel Castle's eyes glaring at her. She tried to ignore it, figuring he just wanted attention or something. However, it was very irritating, so she finally turned to glance at him saying, "What, Castle?"

Castle shook his head. "Nothing," and he turned his head the other way.

Kate knew he wasn't just going to let whatever was tumbling around in his head drop.

After a few seconds of silence, he finally said, "I just noticed that you were wearing a different shade of lipstick than you normally do."

Kate turned to him, confused. She was not at all expecting him to say that. A comment on the case, or an annoying remark maybe, but not that. How did he notice that? He was right, of course. Her old one had run out the other day and she decided to go with a new shade when she went to the store to get another one. She fully was not expecting anyone to really notice, though.

Kate, flustered, replied, "Um, yeah. I am."

Castle turned back toward the window with an accomplished grin on his face. He knew he had frazzled her a bit, which was his reason for saying it. Just a tiny step to show her that he isn't oblivious to the way she addresses her appearance.

They pulled up to the building on the corner and both of them exited the car. Kate and Castle walked through the double doors to find a small, quaint restaurant inside. To their right was a tiny desk with a young Chinese girl standing behind it. At the back was a large desk with two registers and two slightly older ladies standing behind them chatting. There were an assortment of tables throughout the room, larger ones in the middle, and smaller ones against the walls. In the back to the right was a kitchen where they could see an elderly Chinese man and woman cooking. The girl behind the desk saw Kate and Castle and asked, "Table for two?" She looked to be about eighteen or so.

Kate flashed her badge. "Actually, we were wondering if we could speak with the owner."

The girl looked confused, but replied, "Alright. Just wait here and I will go and get my father."

Kate nodded. "I like it in here. Its cozy," She heard Castle say next to her.

"Yea well, he doesn't look very cozy." She gestured at the man who was walking towards them. It was the man who was cooking in the kitchen. He had dark, cold eyes and short jet-black hair. He had a scar that ran down the right side of his face in a jagged way. He was very short, probably about 5'3 or so. She noticed the young girl talking with the woman in the kitchen, probably her mother, looking their way with suspicious expressions.

As the man approached them, Kate held out her hand and said, "Detective Kate Beckett, NYPD. And this is Richard Castle." She gestured towards Castle who held out his hand as well.

The man shook their hands and replied, "Jian Tang. What can I do for you?" Unlike his daughter, he had a very rich, noticeable accent.

"We are investigating the murder of a woman by the name of Lauren Tovar. Did you know her?"

Jian looked very surprised. "Lauren? She's dead?"

"We understand that she was doing an article on you restaurant?"

Jian nodded. "We, my family and I, just opened this restaurant about a month or so ago. My daughter, Erin," he gestured towards his daughter in the back, "just started college this year and we had a hard time trying to come up with her tuition. I lost my job last year so we were depending on my wife for money. She worked at a small restaurant a few blocks from where we live. We were struggling, though. When this place became available, I suggested we open a restaurant of our own to help Erin with college."

"Why did you lose your job, Mr. Tang?" Kate asked, taking out her notepad.

Castle noticed Jian's eyes shift away, nervously. "It was just a misunderstanding."

Kate and Castle exchanged a look. Mr. Tang continued, "When Lauren asked to do an article about my restaurant, I jumped at the opportunity, figuring it would bring in more business."

"You must have been angry, then, when you realized that it was going to have the exact opposite effect," Castle interjected.

Jian looked at him through crinkled eyebrows. "What are you talking about?"

"We saw Lauren's notes and from the looks of it, it didn't seem like she was going to give you a good review," Kate explained.

"What? No. Lauren loved my food. She also loved the fact that we had opened this place for my daughter to have a better life. She said it would make a good story. She was going to help my business greatly with that article."

Kate gave Castle a perplexed look. "Then why did she write those things?" She said to him.

"Maybe we misread? Maybe she was talking about another restaurant?"

"Maybe." Kate looked confused. She turned back to Jian and said, "Thank you for your help. If we have any more questions, we will contact you."

Jian nodded and went back into the kitchen.

As Kate and Castle walked back to the car, he asked, "What if he was lying?"

"I don't know, Castle. He looked pretty sincere."

They both got into the car and buckled up, Kate turning on the ignition. "Well maybe he is just a really good liar."

"I think we should take a second look at Lauren's notes before we make any accusations." Kate replied and pulled out into the street, heading back to the 12th.

There were a few moments of silence before Kate spoke up. "Did you ever want to be a journalist, Castle? Or was it always just crime novelist for you?"

"Nah, I thought journalism would be too hard."

Kate looked at him. "Why is that?"

Castle smirked at her. "In case you haven't noticed, I am not very good with being told what to do. Never mind being told what to write. No, I don't think I would be very good at that at all."

Kate smiled and rolled her eyes. "Well you have a point, there."

Castle met her eye. "And what about you? What did you want to be before you were a cop?"

"For awhile, I got interested in being an attorney, like my mom. She made it sound so exciting and not all about just being deceitful like people make it seem. She felt that she was making a difference in someone's life by defending them."

"What about when she was defending someone who wasn't really innocent?"

Kate smiled softly and put her head down for a second. "She never told me about those sort of cases. When I dug deeper into the career, I realized that I couldn't do that. I couldn't vouch for someone when I knew they were guilty."

Castle nodded and looked out the window, deciding to drop the subject. He surprised, therefore, when she continued. "I told my mother that and she just gave me this knowing smile. I realized that it must have been hard for her, as well. That's when she told me that I should be a cop and catch bad guys instead of defending them. I never really took that idea seriously until…" She looked out her window for a second before clearing her throat and saying, "But anyway, ever since then, being a cop is all I ever hoped to be."

Castle was struck with just how much he admired her. The fact that she opened up to him a bit, seemingly without even realizing it, said a lot about how much she trusted and was comfortable with him. The fact that she caught herself just gave way to her insecurities about sharing too much.

Still, she allowed him to see another tiny piece of her. He always thought that she became a cop for her mom, but now, maybe it was actually _for_ her mom as well. Not only to avenge her death, but to make her proud as well; to accomplish a goal that her mother had set for her. He commended Kate for that.

Kate could feel Castle staring at her again. She looked over expecting to see the same mischievous glint in his eye as before, but was surprised to see a genuine smile overtake his features. It caught her off guard. "What?" She said, trying to sound forceful, but instead it sounded more like a soft whisper.

Castle just slowly shook his head, eyes still boring into her. "Nothing." Slowly he tore his eyes away from her, leaving her to wonder just what he had been thinking.

As they pulled into the precinct, Kate's phone started to ring. "It's Lanie," Kate said to Castle as she parked. "Hey, Lanie. Yea? Alright. We'll be right there." She hung up. "Lanie's got something." She and Castle got out and headed for the morgue.

They walked in the room to find Lauren's body lying on the table. "What do you got?" Kate asked, getting straight to the point.

"Well, I hadn't noticed it before, but when I looked more closely at her throat I saw that inside of it, there were red marks all along her esophagus. And it couldn't have been from her throat being slit because it was actually inside her body, not on the outside. So, I checked her stomach, figuring maybe she ate something too fast and didn't chew enough or something and she had to force it down."

"Well, did you find anything?" Kate asked.

"Well that's where it gets weird." Lanie walked over to one of the side tables.

"How so?" Castle asked as they followed Lanie.

"When I opened her stomach, I found this." She grabbed a crumpled piece of notebook paper with her gloved hands and showed it to them. "My guess is that it was forced down her throat, and from the looks of it, it had only been in her stomach for a couple hours before she was killed."

Kate took a glove and held the piece of paper with it, making sure to not contaminate it with her prints. "Have CSU run it for prints and see if they can figure out what was written on it."

"Will do." Lanie took it back and sealed it in a plastic bag.

"So, most likely, whomever stuffed that paper down her throat did it with rage. I just wish we knew what it said." Castle turned to Kate.

"We will soon enough." Kate replied and began to follow Castle out of the morgue. Before she left the room, however, when Castle was just out of earshot, she turned to eye Lanie. "And don't think you're off the hook. You have some serious explaining to do."

Lanie just smirked at her with mischievous eyes and waved goodbye.

Kate narrowed her eyes at her before leaving and catching up to Castle before he realized she wasn't behind him.

"I bet the person who killed her was the same person who forced that down her throat." Castle said as they entered the elevator.

"Could be. Let's just hope that CSU finds some prints so we can have our suspect." Kate said as the elevator doors closed.

They stood in silence for a moment before Castle said, "So what did you tell Lanie?" without even looking at her, knowing that she didn't expect him to notice.

Kate sighed, knowing she was caught. "Nothing. Just girl stuff."

Castle looked at her out of the corner of his eye and smirked at her feigned nonchalance.

She slowly glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and caught his gaze. He gave her a knowing smile and she blushed and looked away, trying to hide her own smile. Man, she thought, nothing gets past him.

Author's Note: I really hope you guys enjoy the mystery mixed in with the romance. Please please please review and let me know what you guys think of my ideas! I would so very greatly appreciate it!

Much love!

Emily


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